Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we continue to celebrate this joyous season of Christmas and as we all listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are reminded to focus our lives and our attention on the Lord our God alone, through the salvation which He has shown and promised all of us, in His beloved Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, Whom He has sent into our midst so that by His incarnation and coming into this world, He might show unto us the sure path to eternal life and grace, which He has brought unto us through His coming, making it clear to us that God has always loved us, all these while, and each and every one of us have been blessed by His coming, His Presence in our midst, and His ever enduring love.

In our first reading today, taken from the Epistle of St. John the Apostle in which the Apostle exhorted all the faithful, especially the young ones among them that they all should be ever resolute and faithful in following the Lord, in obeying all that He has taught and shown to them, so that they would all remain strong in faith, and not be easily swayed by the many temptations present all around them, all of which might lead them astray and fall further away from the path towards the Lord, and into the path towards eternal damnation. This is because while the faithful people of God have received the truth from the Church and the Lord’s servants, and received the Sacraments of Initiation, but this does not mean that they are immune or cannot be affected by the temptations of the world and sin.

On the contrary, the devil and all of his allies and forces are even more likely to try to strike at all of us the faithful people of God, trying desperately to lead us away from the Lord and from His salvation, so that we will share their fate of destruction and damnation in hell. This is why Satan and all of his forces are always arrayed all the time against the faithful and the Church of God, and time does not pass without the faithful experiencing some form of spiritual attacks and hardships, definitely orchestrated by all those seeking to mislead and destroy us all. This had happened even as early as the earliest moments in the Church, and hence leading to St. John to write this exhortation to the faithful and the Church, and all these still happen even up to this very day.

In our Gospel passage today, we then heard of the continuation of yesterday’s passage on the Presentation of the Lord at the Temple of Jerusalem, in which the Lord Jesus was welcomed by the prophet Simeon, who praised God to have allowed him to see and behold the Saviour of the world before his own eyes. And today therefore we heard of the prophetess Anna, who was also there at the Temple, and to whom the Lord had also revealed that she would witness the Saviour of the world. The prophetess Anna spoke of everything that the Lord would do through this Child, and also predicted with Simeon, what He would become, a Sign to the nations, and also the sufferings that He and His Mother would have to endure, a premonition of the Passion of the Lord.

This is why we are all again reminded today through all these readings from the Scriptures that all of us, the Church, all should always be focused and centred on Christ our Lord, the One Whom we celebrate during this time of Christmas. The joy and celebrations which we have during this time of Christmas should not be focused merely on ourselves and our desire for pleasures and happiness, and definitely should not be inward looking. Instead, the joy that we all have during this time and season should always be outward bound, radiating from us all, and shared to everyone around us. We should always be centred on Christ, His Good News and truth, His love and joy, in all that we celebrate this Christmas and in also how we live our lives each day.

As Christians, it is important that we should always strive to be good and faithful to God in all things. We must always be filled with righteousness and good deeds in all things, all aligned with the Lord and everything that He has shown and taught us through His Church. In our every actions and interactions with one another, we should always be led and guided by the Christian truth, and all that we have been inspired by our holy predecessors. It is important that we all should always be genuine and committed in how we live up to our faith as Christians, or else we are no better than hypocrites and all those who merely have an empty and meaningless faith. We are reminded that we should refocus our attention and lives on the Lord, in case we have lost our path and way amidst the many temptations of this world.

Let us all hence do our best to be good and committed, holy and exemplary Christians at all times. Let us inspire one another and keep each other strong in our commitments to the Lord amidst the many challenges and trials found in this world today. This is why we are constantly being reminded that our lives are greater than just our own desires and ambitions. Our lives and existence in this world are all about serving and following the Lord, and walking in His path, and we should always keep this in mind lest we end up being distracted and swayed away from the path towards righteousness and salvation in God. This Christmas, we are exhorted and reminded to stay on our course and path towards the Lord, and not to lose our path and focus in life.

May the Lord continue to help and guide us in our way, and may He empower each and every one of us to live ever more worthily and allow us to commit ourselves ever more to His path. May God bless our every good efforts and endeavours, all for His greater glory, now and always, through this Christmas season and beyond. Amen.